Matt's Spot

Coming Soon

Bill Bryson is my favorite author. I have read all of his books. I read A Walk In The Woods a few times a year I love it so much. Bryson's ability to create a narrative with just the right amount of wit intertwined with his story telling is uncanny. He hasn't published a book for a few years so I have been anxiously awaiting his next endeavor. Well at least now I now know much longer I need to wait. October 2010. Sure its a long time but I know it will be worth it. His next book At Home: A Short History of Private Life looks to explore the meaning and history of many of the things we have around our homes. As I am typing this I am realizing that this probably doesn't sound like the most exciting book in the world but Bryson has a way of making even the most mundane subjects humorous and fascinating. I can't wait. 

Why our kids are funny

 Our kids are funny because they like to have me take down their old strollers and sit in them while they watch TV on the weekends. Seriously can they sit any closer to the TV?

Let's Vote!

I have recently been thinking of becoming a poll worker. I always thought it would be fun so last year I signed up to have my name put into the worker pool. Thanks to some connections I found at school I was called to work at the June 8th primary. I am now at my Poll Worker class learning how to check people in and work all of the equipment. Super excited.

Volunteer of the Year

 My dad was really into Special Olympics. He had been involved with it since my brother could compete. Whether it be coaching, driving or playing alongside him, my dad was dedicated to my brother and Special Olympics. For the last few years my dad was coaching the Orange Grove Dragon Special Olympics teams including basketball and floor hockey. If he wasn't coaching he could always be found at John's bocce ball tournament, golf, bowling, or square dancing. For all of his years of service Special Olympics Northern California (SONC) is posthumously awarding my dad with the Volunteer Coach of the Year Volunteer of the Year Awards. He is set to receive the award on June 25th at the opening ceremonies at this year's summer games at UCD. We will proudly be there to accept the award on his behalf. A fine tribute. I couldn't be prouder.

Here is the link to the SONC website talking about this year's award winners.

"As Seen on TV"

 Our family could be called an "As Seen on TV" family. Our kids, and Kristi, have tried many products you see in commercials. Let me name a few:

• Shamwow
• Touch n Brush
• Heeltastic
• Oxiclean
• That vacuum food sealer thing

Our latest addition is the "Topsy Turvy" (pictured above) which magically allows you to grow your tomato plants upside down. My mom picked this one up for the kids. This conveniently eliminates the need for a tomato cage and it's patent pending upside down design allows the nutrients in the soil to flow directly to the root. Amazing! It does look kind of weird hanging from the eaves though. At least the dog won't be able to eat the tomatoes when they do begin to grow.

Speaking of our dog Yes she is wearing a "cone of shame" currently. She has a spot on her back that she has licked raw. We're thinking allergies but who knows. Dogs are weird. You know they should make a dog collar that is customizable and decorative so dogs wouldn't feel so bad about having to wear one. Genius. Sounds like an "As Seen on TV" product to me.

Happy Birthday Isabella

We spent a few hours at the Elk Grove Park today to celebrate Isabella's birthday. She is a student in his class. They had a totally awesome bounce house with a slide that Abe loved. We also got to walk down to the pond and look at all the baby ducks swimming around. We'll need to come back again with some bread. Happy Birthday Isabella!

Why our kids are funny

They are funny because they don't like to look at eachother in the morning during breakfast so they construct the Great Wall of Cereal to assure their privacy.

John loves Bocce ball

Yesterday I went with my mom and brother to Sun City in Roseville to watch John in a Bocce ball tournament. I have never seen the game before and I have to say that I like it. It is a super chill sport. Kind of a combination of bowling, shuffleboard, and curling all wrapped up into one. I could definitely see myself playing it someday. John is really good. His team, the Orange Grove Dragons 3, won the gold medal by beating all 3 teams they played. Needless to say he had a great time.

New $100 Bill

 I stumbled upon this story a few minutes ago and found it interesting. They have redesigned the $100 bill to include a host of security features including security ribbons, new watermarks, color changing ink among others. The blue strip down the middle is interesting. Kind of kills the aesthetics if you ask me. If you want to read more about it you can go to the treasury's website here and see a fun video.

New iPhones are a comin!! (allegedly)

I follow Mac news pretty closely. I have several apps for that. One of the stories I have been reading about is that a prototype of the new iPhone slated to come out in June was found in a Redwood City Bar. If you can believe it, an Apple engineer left it there and it was picked up by an unsuspecting patron. Click here for the story. For all you iPhoners you will be happy to hear that the new version will be packed with cool stuff (reportedly). This includes:

• Front-facing camera
• Flash for rear camera
• High-resolution screen
• Squared-off edges design

Here is some video footage of the new device.